Nigel Harris, 60, from Canberra, died of multiple blunt force injuries after he was struck by a competing car when it veered off a dirt track with suspension failure about 35km from the finish line near Alice Springs.
In her findings on Monday, coroner Elisabeth Armitage said while some safety measures had been put in place, Motorsport Australia (MSA) and the Finke Desert Race Incorporated (FDRI), failed to satisfactorily manage the identified risks to spectators from at least 2018.
"Practical and available solutions to mitigate the risk were identified and yet no action was taken by either MSA or FDRI to implement those recommendations before Mr Harris was tragically killed," Judge Armitage said.
She said bunting put in place at the crash site was manifestly inadequate and may have led Mr Harris and other spectators to assume the location was not an unsafe area.
The coroner said there should have been safety marshals at popular locations, and "tellingly" the position of chief spectator marshal was left unfilled in 2021.
"I consider the 35km sand dune should have been a designated public viewing point with all the attendant safety features required of that designation," Judge Armitage said.
"But even without such a designation, given the crowds that historically gathered there and the risk of the site, adequate and appropriate spectator safety precautions ought to have been taken."
After the death of Mr Harris and before the 2022 race, organisers said spectator safety marshals would be introduced along with new rules requiring fans to stand at least 20 metres back from the race track.
Those rules were further enhanced ahead of this weekend's race, with the spectator setback to be 30 metres and some areas of the track, including high-risk corners, declared off-limits.
"Spectator safety marshals will be stationed along the length of the track to monitor spectators' compliance with the new safety measures," organisers said in a statement.
"Spectators have a significant role to play to ensure a smooth and safe running of the 2023 Tatts Finke Desert Race, and there will be a zero-tolerance approach to spectators who fail to follow the new safety measures or instructions of marshals, officials, event staff and NT police."
But Judge Armitage said there had been a myriad of safety recommendations made by previous investigations dating back to 2018 and there had been "no cogent evidence" as to why many had not been adopted and applied.
She also questioned if the 30-metre buffer zones would be adequate.
The Finke Desert Race is an off-road multi-terrain two-day event for motorbikes, cars, buggies and quad bikes through desert country from Alice Springs to the Aputula or Finke community.
Held annually on the public holiday weekend in June, it is one of the biggest sporting events in the NT and usually attracts more than 10,000 fans.
